fungera (to function, work) | Swedish Grammar

fungera means "to function / to work" — but only in the sense of operating correctly. A machine, an app, a plan, or a system fungerar; a person does not. This is the single most important distinction to learn here: English "work" splits into two Swedish verbs, and fungera is the one for things, not people.

Principal parts

Infinitive	Present	Preteritum (past)	Supine	Imperative	Group
fungera	fungerar	fungerade	fungerat	fungera	Group 1

Fully regular Group 1: present fungerar, past fungerade, supine fungerat (har fungerat), imperative Fungera! (rarely used — you don't often command an object to work). No vowel change, no agreement.

fungera is a Latin-derived verb (from fungor, "to perform, discharge a duty"), and like most such -era verbs in Swedish it slots cleanly into Group 1. This is a handy rule of thumb: the great majority of verbs ending in -era (studera, reagera, fotografera, organisera) are Group 1, so their past is always -erade and their supine -erat. Learn the pattern once and a whole class of academic and technical verbs falls into place.

Use 1: a thing works / doesn't work

The everyday use is reporting whether something works. Det fungerar = "it works"; Det fungerar inte = "it doesn't work." This is the phrase you say about a broken lift, a frozen app, or a wifi connection.

Hissen fungerar inte — vi får ta trappan.

The lift isn't working — we'll have to take the stairs. fungerar inte, of a machine.

Funkar wifi:t hos dig? (informal)

Is the wifi working at your place? (informal) funka is the very common colloquial form of fungera.

Bromsarna fungerade inte och bilen stannade inte.

The brakes didn't work and the car wouldn't stop. fungerade — the regular Group 1 past.

Appen har inte fungerat sedan uppdateringen.

The app hasn't worked since the update. har fungerat — perfect, supine fungerat after har.

Use 2: a plan / system / arrangement works out

Beyond machines, fungera covers whether an abstract arrangement works — a plan, a relationship, a schedule, a method.

Planen fungerade förvånansvärt bra.

The plan worked surprisingly well. fungera of an abstract arrangement.

Det fungerar inte att vara på två ställen samtidigt.

It doesn't work to be in two places at once. Det fungerar + att-clause.

Hur fungerar det här systemet egentligen?

How does this system actually work? fungerar = 'operate, function'.

Use 3: fungera som — serve as, function as

With the preposition som ("as"), fungera means "to serve as / function as" — to play a role.

Soffan fungerar som extrasäng när vi har gäster.

The sofa serves as a spare bed when we have guests. fungera som = 'serve as'.

Hon fungerade som tolk under mötet.

She acted as interpreter during the meeting. fungera som a role.

fungera vs jobba / arbeta

This is the heart of the page. English "work" covers both a person works and a thing works, but Swedish keeps them apart:

English	Swedish	Subject
A person works (has a job)	jobba (informal) / arbeta (neutral)	a person
A thing works (functions)	fungera (funka, informal)	a machine, system, plan

So Han jobbar på ett sjukhus ("He works at a hospital") but Maskinen fungerar inte ("The machine doesn't work"). Saying Maskinen jobbar inte would sound as if the machine had a day job.

Min bror jobbar på banken, men datorn där fungerar aldrig.

My brother works at the bank, but the computer there never works. jobba for the person, fungera for the computer — both in one sentence.

A useful way to feel the line: ask whether English could swap in "function" instead of "work." The brakes don't function is fine, so it's fungera. I function at the bank is not what you mean, so that has to be jobba/arbeta. Wherever "function" fits, Swedish wants fungera.

funka — the colloquial twin

In everyday speech you will hear funka far more often than fungera. It is the same verb in casual dress — also Group 1 (funkar – funkade – funkat) — and it carries a slightly lighter, more conversational tone. Funkar det? ("Does it work? / Is that okay?") is one of the most-used phrases in spoken Swedish, stretching from "is the machine working" to "does that arrangement suit you." Keep fungera for writing and anything semi-formal; reach for funka when you're chatting.

Funkar det för dig om vi ses kl. sju? (informal)

Does it work for you if we meet at seven? (informal) funka also covers 'is that okay with you'.

Det funkade inte riktigt som jag hade tänkt mig. (informal)

It didn't quite work out the way I'd imagined. (informal) funkade — colloquial past.

Common Mistakes

❌ Datorn jobbar inte.

Wrong verb — a machine fungerar, it doesn't jobba. jobba/arbeta is only for people with jobs.

✅ Datorn fungerar inte.

The computer isn't working.

❌ Det fungerer bra. (Group 2 ending)

Incorrect — fungera is Group 1, so the present is fungerar (-ar), not *fungerer (-er).

✅ Det fungerar bra.

It works well.

❌ Planen fungerde bra. (bare -de)

Incorrect — Group 1 takes the full -ade. The past is fungerade, not *fungerde.

✅ Planen fungerade bra.

The plan worked well.

❌ Soffan fungerar som en säng till.

Off — 'a spare bed' is extrasäng; and fungera som takes a bare noun: fungerar som extrasäng, no extra article needed in the idiom.

✅ Soffan fungerar som extrasäng.

The sofa serves as a spare bed.

💡

Reserve fungera for things that work — machines, apps, plans, systems (Hissen fungerar inte). People jobbar (informal) or arbetar. In speech you'll hear funka constantly — it's the same verb, just colloquial. And fungera som = "serve as." All Group 1: fungera – fungerar – fungerade – fungerat.

Now practice Swedish

Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.

Start learning Swedish→